Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC) Releases Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Estimates By $0.30 EPS

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC - Get Free Report) TSE: MFC announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday. The financial services provider reported $1.00 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.70 by $0.30, Briefing.com reports. The company had revenue of $10.69 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.73 billion. Manulife Financial had a net margin of 9.79% and a return on equity of 16.26%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.69 EPS.

Manulife Financial Price Performance

MFC stock traded down $0.50 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $31.79. The stock had a trading volume of 1,458,066 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,286,677. The stock has a market capitalization of $55.92 billion, a PE ratio of 15.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 1.08. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $29.39 and a 200 day simple moving average of $27.06. Manulife Financial has a fifty-two week low of $18.42 and a fifty-two week high of $32.94.

Manulife Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 19th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 20th will be given a dividend of $0.296 per share. This is a positive change from Manulife Financial's previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. This represents a $1.18 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.72%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 20th. Manulife Financial's dividend payout ratio is 57.00%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently issued reports on MFC. Barclays initiated coverage on Manulife Financial in a research note on Thursday, September 5th. They set an "equal weight" rating for the company. Dbs Bank raised shares of Manulife Financial to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $35.67.

About Manulife Financial

Manulife Financial Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, provides financial products and services in the United States, Canada, Asia, and internationally. The company operates through Wealth and Asset Management Businesses; Insurance and Annuity Products; and Corporate and Other segments. The Wealth and Asset Management Businesses segment offers investment advice and solutions to retirement, retail, and institutional clients through multiple distribution channels, including agents and brokers affiliated with the company, independent securities brokerage firms and financial advisors pension plan consultants, and banks.